Want to freelance? Five tips to get you started

Who willingly leaps from a warm bed on a rainy morning? Yet that’s a question you might ask if you want to start freelancing. The world awaits, while the familiar comforts. Even if a difficult situation motivates you—a bad boss, job dissatisfaction, or unemployment—fear of the unknown can freeze even the intrepid.

But take heart. You’ll still be the same, familiar, human being; you’ll only become a new human doing. Here are five tips to help you use what you have, stay what you are, and get what you need to prepare for a transition to freelancing.

1. Collect your assets.

You have a professional history: use it! Make a portfolio of your past work, even if it’s not directly relevant to your new freelance practice. The online version can be built with WordPress, Drupal, Muse, or any other web software, and it should contain tangible results of your past work, such as print or digital samples. (If your work is service based and doesn’t produce tangible output, replace portfolio samples with client endorsements and illustrations of your work process.)

While you’re at it, review the details of people you’ve worked with over the past few years. You never know who’ll be the key to finding your new market.

2. Plan your days.

People are creatures of habit, and becoming a freelancer won’t snap you out of old habits. So even before you have clients, figure out how they’ll fit into your daily life. Will you work mornings or evenings? Where will you work? You’ll have to manage your time somehow: minimizing any disruptions in your current life will allow for a smoother transition.

3. Narrow your focus.

There’s a saying: “Nothing is sold, everything is bought.” You can’t sell a service that people don’t want or don’t understand. So figure out now: What skills do you already have? What markets use those skills? How will you craft your offering to make the intersection obvious to buyers? There are plenty of general graphic designers out there, but if you bill yourself as, say, a graphic designer specializing in posters for the healthcare industry, you’ll be a clear choice for that market segment.

4. Prepare yourself for the work.

When you’re looking for work, it’s easy to forget that you’ll eventually have to stop looking and do it. Adapt your business systems (phone, email, file-transfer service, and contact database) to accommodate your clients.

5. Expect success.

Let’s say someone at the coffee shop is interested in what you offer. How will you show that you’re right for the job? A business card, website, and resume show the world you’re ready to work, and you’re serious about it. Then once you get the client, show them you’re prepared with forms and procedures you’ve customized to make the relationship go smoothly. Finally, know how you’ll accept their payment, and ask them for endorsements and future work when the project’s done.

Freelancing doesn’t require you to become a new person: it just makes you use what you have differently. So while the waiting world may be rainy, you’ll enter it with the energy from past success.